The 2021 Census indicates that there are an estimated 3,400 people aged over 15 years in West Sussex who are living with a moderate to severe learning disability and 7,200 adults living with autism. For more information read Our people and places on the West Sussex County Council Connect to Support website
The Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) reports that the numbers of people aged over 18 years with a learning disability receiving long term support from the local authority increased from 1,970 in 2014/15 to 2,185 in 2019/20 but also note that the proportion of people per 1,000 population has remained static at around 3.18 for the 4 years up to 2019/20 For more information read OHID - Learning Disability Profiles.
The numbers of children with learning difficulties and autism have increased by 4% and 40% respectively between 2015 and 2020 indicating increasing numbers for future adult populations.